TF13: Bandai Ben 10

An ever-evolving show with a huge following, Ben 10 is currently in its “Omniverse” incarnation with new episodes airing on Cartoon Network. Alongside the show is a huge toy line by Bandai, and at Toy Fair 2013 we got to see where this license is going and what young and young at heart fans can look forward to this year. Starting small, the new line of 2 inch figures has already hit stores with two packs featuring Ben, his Omnitrix aliens, and select villains like Khyber and his dog. New mini figures in blind foil packs ($2.99) offer even more fun, easily collectible Ben toys, while a new series of “Mechanized Figures” ($8.99) brings the current wind-up toy craze to the Ben 10 world.

This Fall will see the main 4 inch Ben 10 action figure line expand with about 20 new figures including tons of great aliens directly out of the show, some of which will come with mini figures that can interact with Omnitrix role-play toys. One sub-line will be “Omniplasm” figures with translucent parts and interesting coloring; these looked very cool in person. Vehicles for the 4 inch figures include the Tenn-Speed Cycle ($16.99) with Ben in safety gear, while a deluxe Plumber Base playset has all sorts of cool features like an alien jail, defensive turret, removable vehicles, and an electronic transformation chamber with lights and sounds, and exclusive translucent figures of Ben and Humungousaur! The larger deluxe 6 inch figure line ($12.99) will add Shocksquatch, Humungousaur, Heatblast, and Cannonbolt, each with action features that let kids recreate scenes from the show (Shocksquatch has a sparking inner core, Humungousaur throws enemies over his head, etc.).

A new line of Omnikit Figures ($12.99) bridge the gap between model kits and action figures. Kids build an inner “frame” then attach parts to construct specific alien characters. Super poseable and customizable, the Omnikit line will launch with four figures. Kickin Hawk, Shocksquatch, and Humungousaur join the vinyl figure lineup ($12.99), reminiscent of Bandai’s work on Godzilla. Finally, Ben 10 introduces the “Tactilien” ($19.99) series of 10 inch figures with special features like fabrics, wired rubber frame bodies for poseability, LED light up eyes, and more. The first Tactiliens on display were Khyber and Rook.

Ben 10 always has really neat roleplay items, and Bandai has plenty of cool new ones for Omniverse. The big ticket item is the Omni-Link Omnitrix ($29.99), a fully interactive toy that connects via ultrasonics to your TV, online games, and apps. The device recognizes which alien appears in those media and reacts accordingly with light, sound clips, and vibration. There will also be other Omnitrix toys with other features as well as a line of Ben 10 alien masks in both basic versions ($9.99) and deluxe roleplay sets that come with a figure and Omnitrix starting with Crashhopper.